Electric circuit breakers are commonly used to protect branch circuits in residential and commercial buildings against overload and fault conditions. Basically, a circuit breaker comprises a pair of separable contacts, a spring-operated mechanism for effecting separation of the contacts, and a tripping mechanism which automatically releases the operating mechanism upon the occurrence of an overload or fault condition.
Circuit breakers and other electrical distribution devices are often constructed with terminals to form an electrical disconnect. Even though the terminals are mounted slightly below the surface of the circuit breaker's casing, it is possible that an operator could be severely burned or shocked if they accidentally touched the terminals while installing the circuit breaker. Further, adjacent circuit breakers could be short circuited if they were accidentally joined by a conducting material across the respective terminals. The terminals may also be subject to damage during the installation of other components near the circuit breaker.
In view of increasing safety requirements for circuit breaker compartments already in operation that do not contain a protective apparatus for exposed electrical terminals, there is a need for a field-installed protective cover that fits the circuit breaker casing designs of various manufacture.